Chapter 77 – Shadow Trace Technique

Inside the stomach of the exotic beast, the dragon whale, Li Fan found many glazed pearls that had not yet been fully digested.

They were likely remnants left behind after the dragon whale had devoured schools of glazed fish.

“It seems that ever since I killed that giant glazed fish, the glazed fish schools have been in a dire situation,” Li Fan mused to himself.

Besides the glazed pearls, there was also half a piece of coral, a glowing fish bone, and various other miscellaneous items.

Li Fan didn’t bother distinguishing what he recognized from what he didn’t — he packed everything up indiscriminately.

Finally, after one last thorough check to make sure he hadn’t missed anything, he quietly departed.

The journey back was uneventful, and he returned safely to Ten Thousand Immortals Island.

After turning in the dragon whale’s remains, Li Fan exchanged the items he had scavenged from its stomach for contribution points one by one.

A total of 320 points.

Following this, after a round of appraisal, the Myriad Immortals Alliance confirmed that the dragon whale remains Li Fan had submitted were indeed from the one that had previously attacked the island.

And so, the task reward of 2,000 points was his.

Adding the 450 points he had left over from before, Li Fan now had a total of 2,770 contribution points available.

“With this many contribution points, it should be enough to pick a satisfactory cultivation method.”

Currently, Li Fan still lacked a technique for concealing his own aura and tracking others.

Such cultivation methods were relatively rare, but for one at the Qi Refining stage, 2,770 contribution points would absolutely be more than enough.

Li Fan began his selection within the Celestial Mystery Realm.

Meanwhile, within the Myriad Immortals Alliance, the task to hunt the exotic beast dragon whale — one that had left numerous Foundation Establishment cultivators helpless — had now actually been completed by a Qi Refining cultivator.

This anomaly immediately drew the attention of quite a few people.

Especially the group that had originally pooled together to post the task — they were particularly bewildered.

“Late Qi Refining stage, Li Fan? Who is this person? Wasn’t that dragon whale supposed to be able to withstand attacks from Golden Core cultivators? How did this Li Fan manage to kill it?”

“Could it be that he’s been hiding his true cultivation level?”

“This fellow Daoist only recently joined our Myriad Immortals Alliance. You think he could hide his cultivation from the spirit treasure Celestial Mystery Mirror? Impossible!”

“This person is indeed at the late Qi Refining stage — there’s no doubt about it. I’ve had someone verify. He was introduced to our Myriad Immortals Alliance by He Zhenghao not long ago.”

“Oh? Then how on earth did he pull it off?”

“Could it be that he possesses some extraordinary treasure?”

……

A Qi Refining cultivator accomplishing what even Foundation Establishment cultivators couldn’t — it was hard not to let imaginations run wild.

Just then, a disdainful voice rang out.

“Stop guessing, everyone. According to the latest inside information, the kid just got lucky.” These words immediately drew sidelong glances from all around.

“Fellow Daoist Zhou Peng, what do you mean by that?”

“Yeah, lucky? How is that possible?”

……

Zhou Peng sighed as well. “I could hardly believe it myself, but the facts are what they are.”

“The dragon whale’s remains were sent to Elder Gongsun of the Celestial Mechanisms Hall for analysis. The conclusion was that before its death, this dragon whale had fought with at least three sea beasts of the same caliber.”

“The vast majority of wounds on its body were inflicted by those beasts.”

“Before it died, this dragon whale was already running on fumes. Even without that kid’s intervention, it wouldn’t have survived much longer.”

After Zhou Peng finished speaking, the surroundings fell silent.

Though it seemed rather incredible, everyone had heard of Elder Gongsun of the Celestial Mechanisms Hall.

So his conclusions carried considerable credibility.

“They say the dragon whale was showing signs of imminent Dragon Transformation. Perhaps that’s what attracted the covetous attention of other great beasts.”

“That makes a lot of sense. For exotic beasts that can evolve by devouring one another, one that has awakened its ancestral bloodline would be the most potent supplement of all.”

“My, that Qi Refining kid sure had incredible luck. It’s truly enviable — that’s 2,000 contribution points we’re talking about!”

Those around them nodded in agreement.

……

Li Fan had long been mentally prepared for the attention that completing the dragon whale bounty task might bring.

But he wasn’t the least bit worried.

Because no matter how you looked at it, this dragon whale had died from the mutual slaughter between great beasts. He had simply gotten lucky and happened to be passing by to pick up the spoils.

For 2,000 contribution points, taking a slight risk was well worth it.

Setting this matter aside, after a period of searching and comparing, Li Fan settled on his target cultivation method.

《Shadow Trace Technique》.

The essence of this cultivation method was embodied in the four characters of its name — “following like a shadow.”

The technique excelled at tracking and concealment.

Once you locked onto a target, you could follow them like their own shadow, clinging tight and impossible to shake off.

Furthermore, you could hide within shadows just as a shadow does, making yourself completely undetectable.

With such miraculous effects, the price was naturally steep.

1,800 contribution points.

Li Fan didn’t hesitate in the slightest and purchased it outright.

Just as Li Fan was about to enter seclusion for cultivation, he suddenly received a spirit talisman message from He Zhenghao.

“Fellow Daoist Li Fan! My goodness, I never expected the cultivator who hunted that dragon whale was actually you! I thought it was just another cultivator who happened to share your name and cultivation level!”

“It wasn’t until people came asking me about you that I confirmed — it really was you who killed that dragon whale!”

He Zhenghao was extraordinarily excited.

“Good, good, good — you’ve finally avenged me! You have no idea, these past few days, every time I close my eyes, all I see is the price of Spirit Mist Grass plummeting.”

……

Li Fan fell silent for a moment, then after a pause, replied: “It was just luck. I happened to come across the dragon whale fighting other great beasts while I was on a task, so I picked up a bargain.”

Shortly after sending the message, He Zhenghao replied immediately.

“Luck is part of one’s strength! Fellow Daoist, your talent and fortune are both so extraordinary — the Great Dao surely awaits you!”

Before Li Fan could figure out how to respond, another message from He Zhenghao arrived.

“As it happens, there’s something I’d like to ask for your help with, if I may?”

“Oh? What is it?”

“Well, I’d like to ask you to serve as acting guardian of Glazed Glass Island on my behalf. What do you think, Fellow Daoist?”

“Acting guardian?” Li Fan was somewhat curious.

He Zhenghao hurried to explain.

“Because of the Spirit Mist Grass incident, I lost most of my savings accumulated over the years. Seeing myself get further and further from being able to afford that Nascent Soul cultivation method, I just can’t resign myself to it.”

“As it happens, several friends recently discovered an ancient cave dwelling and have invited me to explore it together. According to them, this cave dwelling was sealed before the Great Calamity descended, so there must be quite a few rare treasures inside — it’s not impossible that cultivation methods could be found there as well.”

“If I can come away with something, it would at least partially offset my losses. So I’ve decided to take the gamble.”

Li Fan thought it over but didn’t give an immediate answer. Instead, he asked: “How long would you need me to serve as acting guardian?”

He Zhenghao’s reply came quickly: “Not too long. At the shortest, a year or two. At the longest, three or four years at most.”